Left out in the Cold
by blueglows
Summary: Robots have been going missing and turning up later with major AI components missing. Team Lightyear is sent to investigate, but soon finds that XR is one of the targets. - Also posted on Archive of Our Own - Idea by Ranger-Nova
1. Chapter 1

Left out in the Cold – Chapter One

It seemed like whenever anything serious was going on in the galaxy, their team was the one chosen to deal with it. Oh, a space mummy is attacking Capital Planet? Send Team Lightyear! Mutated vegetables wreaking havoc in suburban homes? Team Lightyear will get to the source of it! Robot injustices of any sort? Team Lightyear is the perfect team for the job.

This particular mission happened to be more robot injustices. Specifically, robots had been going missing and turning up days later with major components of their AI missing. It was Team Lightyear's task to figure out who was targeting those robots and stop them before they harmed anyone else. Buzz was determined to stop whatever villain was behind it, Booster was excited to help save the day, and Mira was glad that they'd be able to help with something big like this. XR, on the other hand, was worried.

Being the only robot on their team, and even the only official "robot ranger" in Star Command, XR found it easy to understand what the victims might have gone through. Worse, XR found it easy to imagine the same thing happening to him. Now, he wouldn't call himself "paranoid" but it was clear that robots were the target and he was a pretty big target when it came to machines.

"Oh, why do they always send ME when the victims are robots?" XR asked, just loud enough for the rest of his team to hear his complaints. "Why can't they send Team Crockett or even Team Vok?"

Buzz glanced over his shoulder back at the small robot. "Now, XR, you know we're assigned to these missions since you have the best understanding how other robots work."

"Besides..." Mira laughed, clearly finding her current thought to be funny. "It's not like it's another energy vampire or something."

"Oh, ha ha." XR's sarcasm made it evident how unfunny he thought the statement was. "Does everyone seem to forget that I'M a robot? What if whoever's doing this goes after ME? Let me tell you- They take my AI chip and I'm caput. That's the ONE thing about me that the LGMs can't replace."

"Really?" Booster looked over at his best friend, a little concerned. "Why not?"

XR crossed his arms, kicking at imaginary dirt on the floor. Actually, there might be actual dirt there; the star cruiser hadn't been cleaned recently. "They don't even know how it's programmed," he told Booster. "So, they have no idea what gives me my lovable personality."

One could just sense Buzz and Mira rolling their eyes at the thought. "Don't worry, XR," Buzz did his best to assure. "No one is going to go after you. After all, going after a space ranger is a criminal offense."

XR blinked, trying to register the meaning behind Buzz's words. "What, like these other robot attacks aren't...?" He watched as Buzz and Mira glanced nervously at each other and even noticed Booster look down at his panel to avoid eye contact. "Wait- What?!" The robot threw his arms up, completely shocked. "Are you saying these attacks were LEGAL?"

"Of course they're not legal, XR," Buzz quickly answered. "Whoever's responsible will have to face theft and vandalism charges."

Frowning, XR lowered his eyebrows in uncertainty. "Not kidnapping and assault...?"

Mira spoke up then, choosing her words carefully. "XR, these robots were all owned by organics... The owners weren't the ones attacked, so they can only file charges for theft and property damage."

"What?!" This conversation was just one shocking fact after another. "People still OWN robots in this day and age?"

"But, aren't you owned by Star Command?" Booster asked, genuinely confused.

"I don't think I am," XR answered, hands going on his hips. "I'm on the payroll!"

Buzz let out a sigh that sounded condescending. "I think you might be getting too emotional about this. It's not like the robots were found seriously damaged..."

"They had AI components missing!"

"They're robots." The answer was said as if it excused everything. "Their owners can have those parts replaced."

XR pouted and crossed his arms, knowing he wasn't going to get anywhere in this argument and that it was better to just shut up now. He was lucky to work for Star Command where they'd fix him up no matter what (or so he hoped), but he knew that some robots wouldn't have that luxury, even with owners. And the fact that they were owned in the first place? Of course they would be on a planet like Tradeworld. He'd expect such a travesty from that planet.

They landed soon after and split up into two groups to investigate the area and search for evidence. XR made sure to stick with Booster, knowing his best friend would be more tolerable to be with at the moment.

"I'm telling you, big guy," he sighed, "this just isn't fair. It's like robots don't even get fair treatment. Y'know, sometimes I can see why Flint went crazy and trapped all of those organics."

Booster gasped a bit and looked over at him. "You're not going to do THAT, are you, XR...?"

The robot shook his head quickly. "No, no, of course not! I like organics too much for that! But, y'know... Sometimes I feel like you guys don't even care every time I get beat up or destroyed."

"But, you can be put back together by the LGMs," Booster argued. "I mean, it is bad that you get blown up all the time, or get torn apart by wild animals, or lose parts, or..." The Jo-Adian trailed off for a moment when he saw his friend's grimace. "Or, all of that! But, you can be repaired each time! Organics can't do that..."

"Doesn't mean it doesn't hurt to get blown up," XR answered with another sigh. "Doesn't mean it's not terrifying getting attacked by robot eating vampires and put under their mind control and then have my own friends act like it's no big deal!"

Booster frowned, though this time he was clearly worried. "Gee, XR... I didn't know you felt that way..."

XR frowned as well. Personally, with how Booster was all the time, he hated to see the big guy with a frown. "Well, I dunno..." He needed to change the subject... "I guess I never thought to bring it up before... J-Just forget about it, okay...?"

"Well..." Booster seemed unsure at first, but then shrugged. "If you say so..."

At that moment, their communicators beeped and Buzz's voice came over the line. "Booster, XR, I need you two to meet up with me and Mira... We, ah... Found another one."

The two glanced at each other and then simultaneously activated their jetpacks, going off to find their teammates. They found Buzz and Mira in the middle of an alleyway. Mira held up the new robotic victim and read off its serial number while Buzz copy down the number into a datapad.

"What's going on?" Booster asked as he landed.

"If this robot is like the others, then it will have an owner," Buzz explained. "I'm searching through the register owner's database to find them." After a moment, there was a ping and Buzz read the name and address. "Ah, good. The owner lives nearby. Booster, Mira, you two take the robot back to the ship for evidence. XR and I will go tell its owner what happened.

Mira and Booster saluted and then grabbed onto either end of the robot, carrying it out of the alley. XR watched, twiddling his thumbs, just staring at the robot. A hand landed on his shoulder and he jumped.

He looked up to find Buzz staring down at him. The human jutted a thumb over his shoulder, signaling for them to get going, and XR saluted, activated his jetpack again. Buzz did the same with his jetpack and soon the two were off.

They got to the apartment complex where the robot's owner was supposed to live and went up to the proper floor. As they neared the flat, they could hear a conversation that gradually got louder and angrier the nearer they got. Finally they came across the source of the argument, a man and a woman, and it was clear they had to step in before it got worse.

"Woah, woah, calm down," Buzz interrupted, gently pushing the man and the woman away from each other. "There's no need for fighting..."

The man huffed up and pulled away from Buzz and the woman. He turned and stormed off, glaring at XR with a sneer as he left. The robot couldn't help but wonder what that was about, but he figured it wasn't important at the moment.

Buzz shrugged and then looked at the woman again. "Ma'am, are you the owner of a robot with a serial number 1004RN-R0M?"

"Yes," she answered, nodding. "I suppose you're here because you have some news about him?"

"Yes," Buzz replied solemnly. "Perhaps we should go inside for this conversation."

The woman nodded and stepped aside to let Buzz and XR in. Soon, the three of them were seated around a table and Buzz explained where they found the robot and what condition it was in.

"Can you tell us when you last saw your robot and what it was doing?" Buzz asked.

She nodded. "Yes, I can. Ser-G, a Service Gofer, was doing errands for me. It might not be helpful, but I last saw him leaving this apartment complex to go off and get supplies. He was on his way to Capital Planet."

Buzz frowned as he listened to the woman. "I see. We'll have to figure out when exactly he was attacked..."

XR frowned as well, but for different reasons than his teammate. "May I say, you don't seem very torn up about this...?" He got a scolding look from Buzz and chose to ignore it.

The woman sighed. "Well, no... Truth be told, I was expecting something like this to happen. I've been getting threats lately. Random phone calls telling me to get rid of Ser-G or they'd do it for me. I had to disable my phone service to stop the calls. I can't leave the planet, so Ser-G goes out for me to get supplies. He leaves for a few days at a time and was supposed to be back this morning. He didn't show up, so I was about to go downstairs and borrow a phone to contact Star Command. But, my neighbor and I got into an argument before I got very far."

"Hmm..." Buzz raised his brow in question. "And what were you and your neighbor arguing about?"

"Oh, this and that. He's part of the Coalition for Organic Life Dignity. He thinks I should learn to 'fend for myself' instead of depending on a machine. He thinks I'm crazy for being worried about Ser-G in the first place when he's 'just a robot.'"

"Well, that's not very nice." XR crossed his arms, suddenly understanding the glare he got. "What did robots ever do to him?"

The woman shrugged, shaking her head. "Who knows...?"

Buzz nodded. "Alright, ma'am, thank you for your time. We'll let you know if we find out anything new. Come on, XR, let's get back to the ship." He got up and headed for the door. XR got up as well, but paused to look up at the woman.

He waggled his eyebrows and grinned at her. "Hey, if you like robots and you're free this Saturday..."

"XR!" Buzz called out before the robot could eve finish his sentence.

"Alright, sheesh, I'm coming!" XR hurried to catch up with Buzz.


	2. Chapter 2

Left out in the Cold – Chapter Two

If his ranger instinct told him to suspect something, more often than not Buzz would trust it. After all, Buzz couldn't think of a time off-hand where his instinct had been wrong. This time, the subject of suspect was that "Coalition for Organic Life Dignity" and Buzz was busy on a Star Command computer, doing research on them. Their personal website had a clear message:

"For the betterment of organic life."

It listed their accomplishments, some of which actually seemed beneficial at first. But, Buzz couldn't help but think there was something about that Coalition, something perhaps sinister, that they weren't mentioning on their webpage.

"Lightyear. How's that robot mission going?"

Buzz looked up to see Commander Nebula making his way towards him. "We haven't found out who's attacking the robots yet, Commander, but I think I have a lead." He moved to the side to give Nebula room to see the screen.

Nebula glanced over the webpage, frowning at what he saw. "Oh... Them. I remember that group. They gave us a lot of flack about the XR project a while back. People just don't like the idea of a robot ranger and I let them know I was one of them. I also let them know that if they kept calling us, we'd go after them for harassment. That shut them up."

"Hmm..." Buzz clicked through the website, searching for more information. "So, they're an anti-robot group, huh?"

"Anti-robot, pro-organic, whatever they want to call it to get more members." Nebula shook his head and then looked up at Buzz again. "Do you think they're behind this robot business?"

"Possibly, Commander," Buzz answered. "I'd need more proof to be sure."

"I dunno if they'd go so far as to attack robots. They're loud, but generally harmless. Even do a lot of charity work for..."

"Children's hospitals," Buzz interrupted, looking at the Coalition's current events page. "They're having a fundraiser for the Capital Plaza Children's Hospital today."

Nebula nodded. "Go ahead and check it out. Maybe you'll find something. You'll probably want to leave XR on the Star Cruiser, though."

"Yes, sir, Commander." Buzz saluted and Nebula started to walk away. Buzz spoke up again before Nebula got too far away. "Commander Nebula..." He waited to see if he had the man's attention. "You're not part of this Coalition, are you?"

Nebula looked back at Buzz, pausing for a moment before giving his answer. "Son, I may not like robots, but I wouldn't dare join a group that tries to tell others that they can't have them."

"But, didn't you try to keep the LGMs from building a robot ranger?"

"That's because I didn't think a bucket of bolts could stand up to a real ranger," Nebula replied. "A real ranger needs a heart and soul after all. You can't program that into a robot." He turned away and began to walk off again. As he left, he continued, "Leave it to XR and even XL to prove me wrong."

Buzz smiled at that final comment and waited for Nebula to leave. He then opened his wrist communicator. "Team Lightyear, meet me at the Launch Bay."

Sometime later, they landed on Capital Planet. The organic members of their team were getting ready to leave while XR would stay behind.

"Don't get into any trouble while you're by yourself," Mira told the robotic ranger.

"Oh, please, Mira," XR rolled his optics, "have a little faith in me."

"Why can't XR come with us?" Booster asked.

"The Coalition for Organic Life Dignity isn't exactly 'robot friendly'..." Buzz answered.

"Are we really going to call them that each time?" XR asked, annoyed. "Can't we call them by an acronym or something? It's what? C... F... C-FOLD?"

"No, you don't add the 'for' in acronyms," Mira said. "It would be COLD."

Buzz had to resist the urge to roll his eyes at his team. "Alright, fine. From now on we'll call them COLD. XR, wait on 42 until we come back. Don't leave the ship unless we tell you to meet us somewhere."

"Aye-aye, Captain!" XR saluted and grinned. He watched as his team walked away and then quickly went back onto the Star Cruiser once they were out of sight. He went straight to the bridge and climbed into Buzz's chair, pulling out his personal copy of Victoria's Circuits. "Boy, not every day I get to slack off. Better make the most of it, am I right?" He laughed, but the sound soon died out when he remembered that he was by himself and no one was there to hear him. He pouted a bit. "Eh... I hope they come back soon."

Meanwhile, Buzz led his team, sans robot companion, to Capital Plaza Children's Hospital. There, they found COLD's fundraiser being set up. Team Lightyear found a good place where they would be less likely to be noticed while they surveyed the event.

"What are we looking for, Buzz?" Booster whispered.

"Anything out of the ordinary," Buzz answered, keeping a keen eye on everything happening. "Anything that might show that they have some reason to be behind the robot attacks."

"Are we really going to find that at a fundraiser for a children's hospital?" Mira asked.

"You'll never know what you find in the oddest places, Mira," Buzz assured her. "You just got to keep looking until you find what you need."

"Ahem...?" The sudden presence of a fourth voice surprised the team. They looked up to see a well-dressed man giving them sour looks while tapping his foot impatiently. "May I ask what you three are up to?"

Mira and Booster looked to Buzz for his answer. Buzz cleared his throat and nodded. "Routine inspection, sure. We're just in the area to make sure nothing... Unsavory is going to happen."

"Unsavory?" the man repeated, not very impressed. "Like what, exactly?"

"Nothing in particular, sir. That's why it's just a routine inspection."

"Uh-huh..." The man motioned to the event being set up. "Look. This is a fundraiser for a children's hospital. It would be bad if we had to stop it halfway through because you lousy space rangers failed to let us know that some villain was going to crash it."

"Space rangers aren't lousy!" Booster argued. "We're the good guys!"

"Yeah, right." The man rolled his eyes. "Don't think just because you left your pet robot behind that I don't know who you three are. Especially YOU, Ranger Lightyear." He pointed at Buzz accusingly. "Let me tell you, I do not agree with the idea of letting some malfunctioning robot take the place of an organic citizen when it comes to my safety."

Mira frowned, placing her fists on her hips. "Yeah, okay, first off? XR's not our PET, he's our PARTNER. Second, what makes you think XR's malfunctioning?"

"Please, like I'm not supposed to read the scientific journals about new unnecessary robots?" The man huffed up a bit. "Your little LGMS gushed all about how that 'XR' robot somehow developed a personality when it wasn't supposed to. Do you know how dangerous that is? A robot with a personality is just one step closer to robots replacing organics."

"Now, sir," Buzz said in a slow, reasoning tone. "XR's personality is what makes him such a great ranger."

"A great ranger?" the man repeated. "You're kidding, right? Your robot cheats and gambles. He flirts constantly. If he were an organic, he'd be a horrible person. As a robot, that makes him a danger to you three and everyone else. What if he turns against you? And, let me remind you, that wouldn't be the first time."

Buzz narrowed his eyes, giving the man a look of suspicion. "And, sir, how exactly do you know so much about XR?"

The man narrowed his eyes as well, silent for a moment before giving his answer. "News programs. Obviously. Now, if you're not here to be useful, I'm going to have to ask you to leave. We're about to start the fundraiser, and I don't want you space rangers around to make people forget why they're here." He leaned forward and sneered, "To help the children."

Their eyes stayed locked in a battle for supremacy, both the man and Buzz trying to wear down the will of the other. Finally, Buzz spoke up, breaking the tense silence. "Let me ask one thing, sir. Who are you and what is your position for your coalition?"

"I'm Jansky," he answered. "And I'm the LEADER."

"Thanks for your time, Mr. Jansky," Buzz said stiffly. "Come on, team, lets get going."

"But, Buzz!" Booster and Mira argued. Buzz ignored the complaints and left, giving the two rookie rangers no choice but to follow him. Once they were far enough away from the fundraiser, they stopped.

"Ooh, the NERVE of that guy!" Mira balled up her fists. "Calling XR a 'pet'."

"He wasn't very nice," Booster observed. "Do you think he's the guy we're looking for?"

"We can't say for sure..." Buzz answered, shaking his head. "But, I did find something out of the ordinary from that conversation. None of the things Jansky said about XR were ever in news programs OR scientific journals."

"But, then..." Booster frowned, showing confusion. "How did he know all that stuff?"

"That's what we need to find out," Buzz said, hitting his fist into his palm. "We need to find out where COLD has their meetings and sneak in to find out what we can."

"What about XR?" Mira asked.

"XR will have to sit this one out. If COLD is the group attacking robots, we can't risk XR's safety by taking him with us."

With that, the team went back to their star cruiser, climbing into the bridge and finding XR in sleep mode in Buzz's chair. The robot had his magazine covering his dome and even was emitting snoring like noises. Buzz rolled his eyes and gently shook XR by the shoulders.

XR jumped to his feet, looking around in a panic before realizing where he was and who he was with. He grinned. "Oh, hey! How was the fundraiser?"

"Fine..." Buzz answered slowly. "How was your... Ah... Nap?"

"Eh, I've had better," XR shrugged. "Wasn't really a good dream. Actually, I'm really glad you woke me up. It was starting to get kinda awful."

"I didn't know robots could dream," Booster pointed out.

XR nodded. "Oh, yeah, I dream all the time."

"That's great," Buzz sighed. "But, you're in my spot..."

"Huh? Oh- oh, right. Sorry Buzz." XR climbed out of the seat and went to his post. Buzz took over control of the captain's chair and then his team returned to Star Command.


	3. Chapter 3

Left out in the Cold – Chapter Three

"So, let me get this straight." XR crossed his arms and looked up at his team, pouting at them. "You three are sneaking into a robot hate group meeting and you're leaving me behind on the ship again."

Mira sighed. "Well, obviously, since it's a robot hate group and you're a robot, you can't come with us."

"Oh, I know that!" XR rolled his eyes. "I don't want to be anywhere near that kind of place! Just..." He frowned again, looking concerned. "Why couldn't I have been left on Star Command? At least I'd have something to DO there."

Buzz and Mira shared a glance. Mira placed her face in her palm and Buzz decided to answer the robot ranger. "Well, XR, if you want something to do, you could always clean up around here or something."

"C'mon!" XR whined, "I was only on the janitorial staff for a day!"

"It's alright, XR," Booster assured. "We'll be back soon."

The robot crossed his arms and pouted yet again, but said nothing else in argument. Buzz, Booster, and Mira left their ship and headed for COLD's headquarters. They landed a good distance away, out of sight from everyone else, and took the time to put on disguises before walking the rest of the way to the meeting. They entered unnoticed with plenty of people, some old, some young, some with their families. Team Lightyear found seats in the back waiting for the meeting to start.

Once everyone was seated and the doors were closed, Jansky walked out on-stage, gaining applause from the rest of COLD. The rangers sat vigilant, waiting to find evidence that Jansky and his coalition were up to know good.

"First off, I want to thank everyone for joining us tonight," Jansky said into the microphone, projecting his voice for everyone in the room to hear. "I see that some of you brought new people today. For everyone that wants to join our cause, the Coalition for Organic Life Dignity welcomes you whole-heartedly. Now, let's start with the minutes from the last meeting."

There was a collective groan, mostly from the younger people. Team Lightyear glanced to each other, but continued to pay close attention to everything that was going on.

After the minutes were read, members of COLD began to come onstage and announce upcoming events such as bake-offs or book clubs or more fundraisers. Someone read an article written in a magazine about their coalition. All throughout, people were allowed to raise their hands for questions, comments, concerns. Most of the little children fell asleep about halfway into the meeting. Booster was following that same route, eyelids growing heavy with each passing hour with nothing interesting going on. Mira stopped paying attention by then and started looking around at everything besides the people on stage. Even Buzz was bored, sitting with his chin in his palm and with his eyes half-lidded, frowning at the lack of excitement.

Jansky came back out and stood in front of the microphone. "Now, this is a topic I know we try to avoid so we don't offend anyone here with how horrible these things are... But, now, I would like to talk to you about robots."

The crowd started to boo, waking Booster up, gaining Mira's attention, and causing Buzz to sit up straight in sudden attentiveness. Jansky waved his hands to get everyone to quiet down and then pulled out a remote.

"Trust me, folks, you'll want to see this," Jansky assured. "But, for those of you who are easily offended, or don't want to expose your children to this, you're free to leave the room and come back when we call you back in." There was a wait while some people got up and left the room. Once everyone stopped moving around, Jansky nodded and pressed a button on the remote.

A screen lowered and a video turned on.

"Robots..." the narrator said, "Helpful to organics...? Or, a dangerous menace?" The clip showed images of robots attacking organics, all without context of what was actually happening in those scenes. "A robot with a mind of its own can think just like an organic. But, this thought process often turns robots evil when they decide they are superior and stronger than the organics who built them. Do you want these dangerous AIs in your home, or would you rather go back to the peaceful times when robots had no AIs and were safe for all organics, adults and children alike. Write in to your local government requesting a ban on robots with AIs before these robots put a ban on your freedom."

The clip ended and people throughout the crowd began to clap their approval. Team Lightyear stared in shock, glancing to each other in hopes that one of them would be able to put their shock into words.

"That isn't what robots are like at all!" Booster whispered to his team.

"They're completely blowing this out of proportion," Mira agreed.

Buzz frowned and continued to watch Jansky. The crowd grew silent again and Jansky began to speak once more.

"That is a commercial we intend on airing on all channels," Jansky explained. "We need to spread the word and make people realize how bad robots are. Some of you have taken a different approach to the removal of robotic AIs from society. I'm sure you've heard of the robots being found with missing AI components. Star Command seems to think this is an issue, but those rangers are neglecting the fact that robots should not have those components in the first place! Robots are objects; they should not be given parts that allow them to fake qualities people have and indeed fool innocent organics into thinking robots are just as much a person as they are! I'll take it upon myself to congratulate those who are aiding their fellow organics by removing these dangerous AI components. If any of you are in the crowd tonight, please stand up to receive the applause you deserve."

The crowd began to clap again while a group of individuals near the front stood up. Booster and Mira glanced to Buzz but Buzz shook his head and motioned for them to remain seated.

Jansky waited for the group to sit down and for the audience's applause to die down again. "Now, as noble as your deeds are, you are working too small-time. You are likely to get caught working one robot at a time. We are hoping that we can convince politicians to ban AI robots, but we have another plan just in case they refuse to listen to reason. The way to rid the world of these so-called 'sentient' robots is through the one that is the most 'human-like' of all..." He said the word "human-like" with noticeable disdain and lifted the remote to press another button. The screen started to show a new series of clips, this time of a robot Team Lightyear well recognized.

"The most dangerous robot of all," Jansky said. "The robotic ranger, XR."

Booster and Mira almost jumped up, ready to take action despite Buzz's orders. However, Buzz held them down and shook his head at them, waiting for what more Jansky had to say.

"This film reel shows exactly how unstable this robot's personality is and how hazardous it would be to continue to let him function," Jansky explained. The clips showed XR on many of their missions during his weaker moments, showing only the bad actions XR committed and none of the good or heroic things he was known for at Star Command. "As a reminder, some of the donations we receive are used to pay a private source that keeps tabs on this robot and records his actions so we have proof against him."

Buzz narrowed his eyes at that comment and looked closely at the film. Just next to the recording time of each of the clips, he could see a familiar monogram Z. "Zurg..." he scowled in a hushed tone. Booster and Mira glanced to each other in worry.

Jansky, however, was not finished talking. "We have to track down this robot ranger, take it into our own hands, and hack into its programming. By learning how the robot's bizarre programming works, we can develop a unique virus that will destroy its fake human qualities, effectively ridding us of the worst threat to organic kind. Not only that, but this virus will then be sent through the entire robotic world and return all machines to the non-sentient state of the golden era!"

Booster looked to Buzz in alarm. "They can't do that!" he whispered.

"I can't believe it..." Mira looked appalled by Jansky's plans. "They want to lobotomize all robots!"

"Don't worry, team," Buzz whispered as well. "Everything he said is on the mission recorder. We have to sneak out of the meeting for now and come back to arrest Jansky later."

"Why not now?" Mira asked.

"We're out-numbered at the moment," Buzz answered solemnly, "and some of these people are just innocent children. They might get caught in the crossfire if we try to arrest anyone now."

"Besides," Booster added, suddenly alarmed, "we have to get back to XR! Look!"

The screen showed a clip of XR, in sleep mode in the Buzz's chair again and with no one around to protect him. The time the clip was recorded showed the exact time it was at that moment. It was clear Jansky knew XR was alone and vulnerable and so they'd have to get to XR before Jansky and his cohorts did.

Luckily, the meeting decided to take a break at that moment. Buzz led his team to the exit, planning to get away before anyone could stop them. However, the entire large crowd was moving around at that moment, and it made it hard to navigate through. Booster followed closely after Buzz and Mira and they soon got to an open area where it seemed they'd make it out scot-free.

It was then that a random member of COLD accidentally stepped on the edge of Booster's disguise, pulling it off of the Jo-Adian and revealing his space ranger suit underneath.

"A space ranger!" the person cried, gaining the attention of everyone else in the room. Others began to pull out weapons to apprehend Booster before he could get away.

Buzz and Mira frowned and pulled off their own disguises, readying their wrist lasers in the event of a battle. However, the screech of microphone feedback stopped them all, and Jansky gave everyone a disappointed look before focusing a glare on the rangers.

"Now, now, Lightyear," Jasnky said in a warning tone. "Don't do anything stupid... There are innocent little children in the room, and you don't want them to get hurt, do you?"

Buzz held his ground for a moment but then grudgingly lowered his wrist. Mira and Booster were forced to do the same, Mira scowling and Booster frowning in concern.

"Disable their equipment," Jansky ordered. "Lasers, communicators, jetpacks. Everything. We were warned about this, so we have a special place set up to hold them for now."

Some of the COLD members, including the group behind the robot attacks, did as Jansky told them to do. The ones with weapons guided the rangers, following Jansky's lead to a cell that the team was then put into.

"Anti-Tangean material and ridiculously strong at that," Jansky taunted once Team Lightyear was stuck behind the energy bars of the cell. "You'll not be getting out of that any time soon. Long enough for us to get your little robot and do exactly as we planned."

"You won't get away with this, Jansky," Buzz warned. "Evil never wins."

"I'M not the evil one, Lightyear," Jansky scowled in return. "And you're a fool for falling into the same pro-robot trap as most of the galaxy. But, with any luck, we'll change that."

Jansky and his accomplices left the room, leaving the three rangers to try to figure out what to do. Mira tested the walls and found she couldn't ghost through them while Booster tried to break them down but instead rebounded and fell backwards. Buzz inspected the lock on the door only to see that only XR would have the right equipment to unlock it.

Booster scrambled back to his feet. "What are we going to do, Buzz? XR's in trouble!"

"If they catch XR, all the robots will be in trouble," Mira reminded.

Buzz frowned, trying his best to think of a plan, or at least something to reassure his team. "XR's a good ranger... He'll realize something is wrong and contact Star Command for back-up. We can only hope that Jansky doesn't get his hands on him before that..."


	4. Chapter 4

Left out in the Cold – Chapter Four

_He smiled at his dear old dad, Commander Nebula, hoping he was able to please him for once. He was doing his best as a ranger, all because he knew that's what his dad would want._

_"So, you went ahead and built that _expendable_ ranger." Well, that wasn't very nice... "UNAUTHORIZED RANGER!" But, Commander Nebula signed his work order, didn't he? "No bucket of bolts can stand up to a real ranger."_

_...He WAS a real ranger, wasn't he?_

_"Oh, please, it was just a hunk a metal!" He remembered saying that..._

_"Okay, and you are?" Well, Mira's sarcasm wasn't needed. He was more than just a hunk of metal; he was a space ranger!_

_"Aren't you owned by Star Command?" Poor naïve Booster... He was built by Star Command and he worked for Star Command, but he owned himself, just like any other organic..._

_Except, he wasn't an organic...But he was like one! The LGMs said so! He could be just as much as a person as anyone else he knew! He would show them that he wasn't just some soulless teryllium toy! He could be compassionate, he could be scared, and he could be justifiably angry... He wasn't going to let any anti-robot group get him down._

_He wasn't "just a robot". And he'd prove it to them._

XR came out of sleep mode, groggy from the lack of recharge, and pulled his magazine off his face, letting it drop to the floor. He stared at it for a moment, thinking of how he'd have to get a new issue sometime. He sat back and listened for a moment, soon realizing that he heard someone making their way to the bridge.

"Sweet mother of Venus!" he cried, jumping out of Buzz's seat. "They're back and I haven't cleaned yet!"

He pulled out a spray bottle and a cloth and began to quickly clean what he could before his team made it back to the bridge. He heard the door open and glanced over his shoulder, then turning around in surprise.

"Hey! You're not my team!" he shouted at the unknown person. "This is Star Command property, you can't be here!"

The person scowled at him and made their way closer. XR backed away. They tried to jump at him and, in a panic, XR sprayed the cleaner in the person's face. They cried out and pulled away, losing their footing and falling back against the wall from the vertically positioned ship. XR loosened his magnetic hold and hurried past the person, escaping from the ship to safety outside.

"There he is! Get him!"

"Oh, this is not my day," XR muttered, dodging away from all of the attempts to grab him. "Members of COLD no doubt," he accused. "What did you do to my team?"

He received no answer, only further attempts to subdue him. He activated his jetpack and flew off, knowing he had no option at the moment but to try and escape. Everyone chased after him and he flew fast in order to ditch them.

XR dove into an alleyway and let all of his assailants run by. He peeked out to make sure no one else was around and then dived back into the safety of the alleyway, opening up his communicator. "XR to Team Lightyear! Come in, Team Lightyear!" Nothing but static... "Buzz? Mira? Booster?" None of their communicators were working... This wasn't good at all.

"XR to Star Command!" Hopefully that line was still working...

"Star Command, here. What's the issue XR?"

"I can't contact my team and members from COLD are after me!"

"...COLD?"

XR smacked his palm against his dome. "The Coalition for Organic Life Dignity! I think they may have done something to my team!"

"Alright, stay calm, XR. We'll send back-up as soon as possible. Don't do anything stupid until back-up arrives. Star Command out."

The robot frowned and closed his communicator. "Don't do anything stupid," he mocked. "What's stupid is that I'm supposed to just sit here hiding while my team is in trouble! I have to go and rescue them!" He activated his jetpack again and flew out of the alleyway, following his programmed maps to COLD headquarters.

XR landed at the back door and inspected it for alarms. He was surprised to not see any and just opened the door and rolled in. "Boy, this place is easier to break into than PC-7's AI defense system," he mused to himself. "Oh, wait, that's right. These people don't like AIs..." He looked around at the various hallways to choose from. "Now, if I were keeping space rangers prisoner in a non-profit organization headquarters, where would I put them...?"

He picked a random hallway and carefully made his way down it, checking each room while doing his best to avoid being seen. After looking into so many rooms, he managed to come across his team and immediately went in. "Hey!" he said, gaining their attention and surprised looks.

"XR?" Booster asked.

"XR, what are you doing here?" Mira looked worried. "Don't you know that Jansky's after you?"

XR shrugged. "Yeah, I sorta figured from all the people chasing after me."

Buzz frowned. "We need to get you out of here as soon as possible. Can you unlock the door?"

"Sure, let me see..." XR inspected the lock, tapping at it a few times. "You can probably just blast through this thing to open it..."

"Ahem."

"Someone have a cold?" XR asked, looking up at his team. He saw them all glaring at something over by the door and he immediately turned around, wincing at the sight of the Coalition's leader. "O-Oh... Someone IS a COLD. So... You're the big cheese around here, huh? Jansky or something, right? Now, I want to let you know that I'm not here to hurt anyone. I just want to get my friends and get out. No need to fire any weapons or anything. AH!" XR pulled back when a weapon was fired right at his feet.

"Oh, shut up," Jansky frowned at him, still aiming his gun at XR. "Like I'm going to just let you and your owners go."

"Owners?" XR scowled, balling his fist on his equivalent of hips. "Look here, pal, I'm my own owner! These are my friends!"

"That's what you want them to think, but I know how wrong that idea is," Jansky answered, narrowing his eyes. "Robots should not be 'friends'. They should not be replacements for any organic position. They shouldn't even be considered people, yet, here you are, thinking you're just as important as any organic in the room."

Buzz frowned, disapproving of what the man had to say. "Jansky, your mindset is really warped! XR is a respected member of Star Command and has just as many rights as you or me."

"Oh yeah?" Jansky asked. "What about other robots with sentient programming? Flint? NOS-4-A2? XL?"

XR looked up in disbelief. "Hey, buddy, I don't approve of what Flint or NOS-4-A2 did either! And, FYI, XL reformed and works for Star Command now!"

Jansky snorted indignantly. "And see how easy it is for robots to switch sides?"

"You're twisting his words!" Mira argued.

"Whatever. Look." He glared straight at XR. "Point is, you either give yourself or I'll call up Zurg and let him have your 'friends'."

XR frowned, and backed up right up to the energy bars of his team's cell. He moved his hands behind his back. He pulled out a laser gun and held it out for Buzz to take. He had to keep talking in order to prevent Jansky from noticing what he was doing. "Huh... Is that so...? Well, what exactly do you have planned for ME then?"

Jansky rolled his eyes and then looked up at Buzz. "See, Lightyear? This is what I mean. Your robot cares more about itself than others. What makes you think he's not one step away from betraying you completely?"

"Oh, you're going to play that game, huh?" XR felt the gun be taken from his hand and he moved his fists to his hips again. "Well, then, mister... If it means you'll let me friends go, I'll..." He made a gulping noise, suddenly realizing how nervous he was. "I'll give myself up."

Booster gasped. "XR, no!"

"Don't try and stop me, Booster!" XR told him melodramatically. "I know that it's for the best!"

"Actually..." Mira tried to warn XR, but Jasnky cut her off.

"Cut the dramatics," the man scowled. He grabbed the robot and pulled him out of the room.

As soon as he was gone, Mira and Booster looked to Buzz.

"What are we going to do?" Booster asked.

"We have to help him!" Mira added.

Buzz nodded and motioned for the two to step back. He held the gun XR gave him at the lock and pulled the trigger. The lock blew apart and the energy bars faded. "Let's go, team!"

The team immediately ran out searching for Jansky and XR. They managed to find XR about to be thrown into an incinerator by other members of COLD. Booster pushed them aside and grabbed XR while Mira gave the two COLD members brain squeezes to knock them out. Buzz took XR from Booster and set him down. He took inspected the robot, frowning at what he found.

"He appears intact, but he isn't responding..." Buzz's eyes widened and he pulled off the robot's glass dome, then inspecting XR's head. "Blast! They took his AI chip!"

"But XR said that's the one part of him the LGMs can't replace!" Booster cried out.

"They must have taken it to make that virus they were talking about," Mira scowled.

Buzz put XR's head and dome back on and then handed the body to Booster. He picked up the gun again and then stood up, determined. "We have to find them before they get that far. It's not just XR anymore; all of robotic life is on the line. Booster, you hang onto XR. C'mon, team!"


	5. Chapter 5

Left out in the Cold – Chapter Five

Jansky paced back and forth. His programmers were at work extracting the data from the robot's AI chip. There was no hurry with Lightyear and his team locked up, but... Then again it WAS Lightyear... He could escape any minute, find them, and end their plans before they get far enough to actually help the world. Poor, ignorant Lightyear... The man believed the same lies as everyone else and that would be the death of him eventually.

He sighed and walked up to the programmers, looking over their shoulders at the screen. "What's the progress?"

The first programmer glanced up at him, frowning. "We're not sure if we can make the virus after all..."

"WHAT." Jansky scowled. "That's the whole reason we did this! Why can't you?"

"Well, just look at this!" The programmer motioned to the screen. "It's a wonder that thing can function with this mess of a programming! Everything's just a series of random characters. It doesn't make any sense at all."

The other programmer snorted. "It'd be more of a virus to just upload this programming to other robots... But, then we might get more robots like this one. And we can't even delete any part of the programming from the AI chip. It's all locked up."

"Ugh..." Jansky rubbed his temples. "This is stupid... How's the OTHER plan, at the very least?"

"In progress," the first programmer answered. "Shouldn't take much longer. In the meantime, we also have the robot's memory files."

"Yeah? What can we do with those?"

"We can look through them," the second programmer shrugged. "Find good ones to delete in case they get the chip back. If we delete the right ones, it might keep the robot from functioning properly so they'll have to scrap him."

Jansky nodded. "Fine, then. If that's the least we can do..."

They began to search through the memory files, opening data from random days. One day had the robot being attacked by that energy vampire NOS-4-A2... XR seemed to be overcome with sheer terror... There were plenty of days where XR felt the deepest adoration for Commander Nebula, calling him "dad" even when the Commander clearly didn't like that. XR always seemed to want to impress Nebula and get on his good side. Some days, the robot was concerned about the rest of Team Lightyear and did whatever it could to save them from danger. There was a time XR felt deep attraction for another robot, there was anger, there was feelings of hurt or betrayal, and determination to do what was right and good for everyone.

It was almost as if the robot were human.

"I..." Jansky couldn't help the awed tone in his voice, even if he tried to hide it from the others. "I had no idea..."

Suddenly, the lock on the door blew off and the door was kicked down, revealing Team Lightyear on the other side.

"Jansky, by the authority of Star Command, I demand that you surrender!"

Jansky stared at Buzz for a moment. One of the programmers looked up at Jansky and whispered to him. "Should we delete the memory files, sir?"

He hesitated but then whispered back. "No... Save them." Jansky focused on the space rangers again and nodded. "Alright, Lightyear, we'll surrender."

"And give back the AI chip?" Buzz asked, to clarify.

"Yes. And give back the AI chip."

Mira frowned and raised her brow. "Uh... Not that I'm complaining, but... Just like that...?"

Jansky shrugged. "I didn't realize a robot could be such a person..."

Buzz nodded, smiling. "That's XR for you. He may be a robot, but he's just as much a person as anyone else."

"Yeah, yeah..." Jansky leaned over and whispered instructions to the programmers. They nodded and then one began to type at the computer while the other got the AI chip and handed it over to Buzz.

Not long after, the back-up XR was promised arrived. The other space rangers worked on arresting everyone involved with the plot, as well the group who stole the AI components originally. Buzz watched as Jansky was taken away and then focused on the rest of his team. Mira put XR's AI chip back into place and a few moments later, the robot rebooted and stretched.

"Ugh, let me tell you, I've been having the worst naps lately..." XR glanced up and around at his team. "Wait, what happened...?"

"Jansky gave up!" Booster grinned.

Buzz nodded in agreement. "He saw something while going through your memory files that made him realize that you are a person after all."

XR frowned. "And he just gave up like that...? No arguments? That's a little... Suspicious, isn't it?" The rest of his team exchanged glances but then XR shrugged and grinned. "But, hey, no one got hurt, right? And you found who attacked those robots?"

Mira nodded. "They were arrested too."

"Then, case closed!" XR stood up. "Now, can we get back to Star Command? I really need a long recharge after all this..."

Buzz nodded and motioned for his team to follow him back to their Star Cruiser. With COLD stopped, they could all rest peacefully knowing that robotic kind was safe.

.

.

.

Back in the computer room of COLD headquarters, the computer Jansky and his workers were using glowed bright, still in use. A loading bar slowly crawled towards the end...

_98% ... 99% ... 100% ... File Sent._

The End.


End file.
